Robot cops rule! Humanoids take over streets of Kinshasa to tackle traffic chaos

By Teo Kermeliotis, for CNN

Updated 1915 GMT (0215 HKT) May 26, 2014

Kinshasa's robot cops8 photos

Kinshasa's robot cops – Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has installed two robots to help bring order in the city's hectic traffic.

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Kinshasa's robot cops8 photos

Kinshasa's robot cops – Powered by solar panels, the robots are equipped with cameras that record the flow of vehicles.

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Kinshasa's robot cops – The eight feet-tall machines are designed to help drivers and pedestrians traverse the roads safely.

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Kinshasa's robot cops – The robots are always on duty, working day and night.

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Kinshasa's robot cops – "The traffic is a big problem in the rush hours," said Vale Manga Wilma, president of the DRC's National Commission for Road Safety. "With the robots' policemen intelligence, the road safety in Kinshasa becomes very easy."

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Kinshasa's robot cops – The humanoids are also programmed to speak, telling pedestrians when they can cross the road or not.

Kinshasa's robot cops – Authorities say that this is a DRC-made technology, designed and built by an association of Congolese engineers.

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Story highlights

Two talking robots have been installed in the DRC capital Kinshasa to regulate traffic

They are powered by solar panels and are equipped with surveillance cameras

The aim is to cut accidents and help reduce traffic in Kinshasa's busy streets

How do you solve the problem of choking road traffic in one of the world's bustling megacities? You bring in the robot cops.

In Kinshasa, the sprawling capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, two humanoid robots have been installed in high-traffic areas to regulate the flow of vehicles and help drivers and pedestrians traverse the roads safely.

Standing eight feet tall, the robot traffic wardens are on duty 24 hours a day, their towering -- even scarecrow-like -- mass visible from afar. They are powered by solar panels and are equipped with rotating chests and surveillance cameras that record the flow of vehicles.

The humanoids, which are installed on Kinshasa's busy Triomphal and Lumumba intersections, are built of aluminum and stainless steel to endure the city's year-round hot climate.

Featuring green and red lights, Kinshasa's robot cops are designed to merge some of the functions of human officers and traffic lights. The anthropomorphic robots can raise or bend their arms to stop passing vehicles or let others pass, and are also programmed to speak, indicating to pedestrians when they can cross the road.

Manga Wilma said that this is a DRC-made technology, designed and built by a team of local engineers called WITECH ONG.